Book picks similar to
Jack and the Baked Beanstalk by Colin Stimpson


picture-books
picture-book
fairy-tales
children-s-literature

Sleepless Beauty


Frances Minters - 1996
    There's a wicked witch, a magic castle (really an apartment), and a dreadful curse. And Beauty still has to be very careful about pricking her finger. But don't count out the ingenuity of today's fairy tale heroine--especially when she has the help of a handsome rockstar. Full color.

Swamp Angel


Anne Isaacs - 1994
    She single-handedly defeats the fearsome bear known as Thundering Tarnation, wrestling him from the top of the Great Smoky Mountains to the bottom of a deep lake. Caldecott Medal-winning artist Paul O. Zelinsky's stunning folk-art paintings are the perfect match for the irony, exaggeration, and sheer good humor of this original tall tale set on the American frontier.A Caldecott Honor BookAn ALA Notable BookA Time magazine Best Book of the YearA New York Times Best Illustrated Children's Book of the YearWinner of the Boston Globe/Horn Book AwardA Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year

If You Give a Pig a Pancake


Laura Joffe Numeroff - 1998
    They continue the tradition that began with such whimsical titles as If You Give a Mouse a Cookie and If You Give a Moose a Muffin with yet another tale of actions and consequences: If You Give a Pig a Pancake. Once again, Numeroff follows the potential effects of one creature's chaotic demands, creating a tale filled with beguiling characters, delightful anticipation, and a fun sense of adventure. In addition to being humorous and entertaining, If You Give a Pig a Pancake allows children to see how their own constant demands might frazzle their parents. Kids should also enjoy studying the subtleties in Bond's colorful illustrations, such as the facial expressions of the book's adorable protagonist or the details found in a mountain of bubbles and the contents of a closet. Easy to understand, stimulating to both mind and eye, and irresistibly amusing, this is one book children will likely want to read over and over again. --Beth Amos

The Five Chinese Brothers


Claire Huchet Bishop - 1938
    "An original nonsense tale told with...spirit and gusto." -- The Horn Book

Rapunzel: Based on the Original Story by the Brothers Grimm


Sarah Gibb - 2010
    Until one day a handsome prince, passing by on his horse, is transfixed by the magical sound of Rapunzel singing to her animals friends and knows he must reach her... Can true love transform Rapunzel's life forever?

The Golden Sandal: A Middle Eastern Cinderella Story


Rebecca Hickox Ayres - 1998
    Since Maha's father is away fishing most of the time, there is no one to help or comfort her. All that begins to change when Maha finds a magical red fish. In return for sparing his life, the fish promises to help Maha whenever she calls him. On the night Maha is forbidden to attend a grand henna to celebrate the coming wedding of a wealthy merchant's daughter, the fish is true to his word. His magic sets in motion a chain of events that reward Maha with great happiness, and a dainty golden sandal is the key to it all.Rebecca Hickox's eloquent retelling and Will Hillenbrand's lush pictures offer a beguiling version of a story well-loved by many cultures the world over.

The Girl Who Spun Gold


Virginia Hamilton - 2000
    A tiny creature comes to save her under the condition that she has three chances to guess his name right.West Indian

Abiyoyo


Pete Seeger - 1963
    The tale of how a father with his magic wand and a boy with his music triumph over the giant Abiyoyo is based on a South African lullaby and folk story.

The Day the Crayons Quit


Drew Daywalt - 2013
    But when he opens his box of crayons, he finds only letters, all saying the same thing: We quit!Beige is tired of playing second fiddle to Brown. Blue needs a break from coloring all that water, while Pink just wants to be used. Green has no complaints, but Orange and Yellow are no longer speaking to each other. What is Duncan to do? Debut author Drew Daywalt and New York Times bestseller Oliver Jeffers create a colorful solution in this playful, imaginative story that will have children laughing and playing with their crayons in a whole new way.

Arnie the Doughnut


Laurie Keller - 2003
    One by one, doughnuts were chosen, placed in paper bags, and whisked away with their new owners. Some went by the dozen in giant boxes.Good-bye! Arnie yelled to each doughnut. Have a good trip!This is so exciting! Arnie beamed. I wonder who will choose ME?At first glance, Arnie looks like an average doughnut--round, cakey, with a hole in the middle, iced and sprinkled. He was made by one of the best bakeries in town, and admittedly his sprinkles are candy-colored. Still, a doughnut is just a doughnut, right?WRONG! Not if Arnie has anything to say about it. And, for a doughnut, he sure seems to have an awful lot to say. Can Arnie change the fate of all doughnuts--or at least have a hand in his own future? Well, you'll just have to read this funny story and find out for yourself. This title has Common Core connectionsArnie, the Doughnut is a 2004 Bank Street - Best Children's Book of the Year.

Jim and the Beanstalk


Raymond Briggs - 1970
    Climbing to the top of the beanstalk, he found a castle and a giant, but with very modern problems that only Jim could help solve. Raymond Briggs brings a new generation to an old tale with humor and imagination.

Pretty Salma: A Little Red Riding Hood Story from Africa


Niki Daly - 2006
    But cunning Mr. Dog tricks Salma, and before she knows it, he’s wearing her stripy ntama, her pretty white beads, and her yellow sandals. And he’s on his way to Granny’s house! African culture and flavor infuse this inventive retelling of a favorite fairy tale, and the vibrant lively illustrations bring it to life. The result is a story that combines new and old and spans cultures as successfully as it has spanned the centuries.

Bloom


Doreen Cronin - 2016
    Bloom and her mud fairy magic might be able to turn weeds into flowers and spin sand into glass, but the people of the kingdom ceaselessly complain about the trails of dirt and puddles of mud that seem to follow her every step, and finally they cast her out.But when the glass castle begins to crack, then cracks some more, the King and Queen in a panic search for the long-banished fairy, but they can’t find Bloom anywhere. Desperate to save their home, they send their meekest, most ordinary subject, a girl named Genevieve whose sole task until now has been to polish the Queen’s crystal sugar spoon—to coax any worthy fairy to come and save the kingdom. Genevieve finds Bloom exactly where the king and queen failed to see her, and Bloom knows exactly how to save the kingdom. But it will take the two girls working together, along with a mighty dollop of self-confidence—and some very messy hands—to accomplish the extraordinary.

Deep in the Forest


Brinton Turkle - 1976
    Pencil-and-wash pictures bring the forest and Goldilocks' family frontier cabin to life, infusing the tale with a satisfying warmth, a sense of love and security, and just the right touch of humor.

Snow White and the 77 Dwarfs


Davide Calì - 2015
    When the 77 dwarfs who live there invite her to stay, it seems like a perfect solution--at first. But with 77 dinners to make, 77 lunches to pack and 77 little hats to wash, Snow White begins to wonder if she's bitten off more than she can chew...